2011 Berlin Marathon
Encyclopedia
The 2011 Berlin Marathon
was the 38th edition of the annual marathon
event and was held on Sunday 25 September on the streets of Berlin
, Germany. The men's race was won by Patrick Makau of Kenya in a world record time of 2:03:38 hours. The women's winner was Florence Kiplagat
, also from Kenya, won in a time of 2:19:44 hours, which made her the ninth fastest woman of all-time. It was the first marathon she had completed in her career. In total, 32,991 runners managed to finish the 2011 edition of the marathon, comprising 25,577 men and 7414 women.
Prior to the race, the two favourites for the men's competition were Makau (the defending champion and then-fifth fastest ever) and the world record holder Haile Gebrselassie
of Ethiopia – the race marked the first outing since Haile had declared retirement following a poor showing at the 2010 New York City Marathon
. There were a large group of pacemakers aiding the elite men for the first part of the race. The leading group, including the two favourites and three others (Edwin Kimaiyo, John Kyui and Emmanuel Samal), reached the halfway point in 61:44 minutes. Makau became the first runner to break away at the 26 km mark and he began zig-zagging along the course in the hope of disrupting Haile Gebrselassie, who followed. The tactic worked as the Ethiopian came to an abrupt halt, later dropping out entirely. Makau sped away unopposed and finished the race with a world record, beating his rival's former mark by 21 seconds. Behind him, Stephen Kwelio Chemlany, who started as a pacemaker, continued to the finish to take second place with a time of 2:07.55 hours and Kimaiyo was third to cross the line in 2:09:50 hours, making it a Kenyan podium sweep.
The two headline athletes for the women's race were Germany's Irina Mikitenko, the 2008 champion, and world record holder Paula Radcliffe
of Great Britain. Radcliffe had not raced in a marathon for two years, due to injury and childbirth, and stated that her target was to gain the qualifying time for the 2012 London Olympics. A trio of Russians, Lidiya Grigoryeva, Tatyana Petrova
and Nailiya Yulamanova
were considered the other main contenders for the elite women's race. However, it was Florence Kiplagat
(the 2009 World Cross Country Champion
) who assumed the lead at the start of the race and set a fast pace. Only Radcliffe followed, but she fell back after 12 km as she was unable to match the Kenyan's speed. Kiplagat was never overtaken and crossed the line in a time of 2:19:44 hours, becoming the ninth fastest woman of all-time and completing her first ever marathon (she had started the 2011 Boston Marathon
but dropped out). Radcliffe was in second place for much of the race, but was overtaken after 33 km by Mikitenko, who ran a more steady-paced race. The German was the eventual runner-up in 2:22:18 hours, while Radcliffe took third with a time of 2:23:46 hours.
The wheelchair races saw Swiss athletes take the top two places: Marcel Hug
narrowly defeated Heinz Frei
in the men's race and there was just one second between the women's winner Edith Hunkeler
and runner-up Sandra Graf
. Ewan Fernandez and Sabine Berg were the men's and women's winners in the in-line skating marathon.
Elite women
Women
Women
Berlin Marathon
The Berlin Marathon is a major running and sporting event held annually in Berlin, Germany. The official marathon distance of 42.195 kilometers is set up as a city-wide road race where professional athletes and amateur runners jointly participate...
was the 38th edition of the annual marathon
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
event and was held on Sunday 25 September on the streets of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany. The men's race was won by Patrick Makau of Kenya in a world record time of 2:03:38 hours. The women's winner was Florence Kiplagat
Florence Kiplagat
Florence Jebet Kiplagat is a Kenyan long-distance runner. She is a two-time world champion having won at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and the 2010 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships....
, also from Kenya, won in a time of 2:19:44 hours, which made her the ninth fastest woman of all-time. It was the first marathon she had completed in her career. In total, 32,991 runners managed to finish the 2011 edition of the marathon, comprising 25,577 men and 7414 women.
Prior to the race, the two favourites for the men's competition were Makau (the defending champion and then-fifth fastest ever) and the world record holder Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is an Ethiopian long-distance track and road running athlete. He won two Olympic gold medals over 10,000 metres and four World Championship titles in the event. He won the Berlin Marathon four times consecutively and also had three straight wins at the Dubai Marathon...
of Ethiopia – the race marked the first outing since Haile had declared retirement following a poor showing at the 2010 New York City Marathon
2010 New York City Marathon
The 41st New York City Marathon took place on Sunday , 2010. Sponsored by ING, the competition was the fifth World Marathon Major of 2010 and an IAAF Gold Label Road Race. A record 45,344 people were entered into the race. Ethiopian runner Gebregziabher Gebremariam won the men's race in a time of...
. There were a large group of pacemakers aiding the elite men for the first part of the race. The leading group, including the two favourites and three others (Edwin Kimaiyo, John Kyui and Emmanuel Samal), reached the halfway point in 61:44 minutes. Makau became the first runner to break away at the 26 km mark and he began zig-zagging along the course in the hope of disrupting Haile Gebrselassie, who followed. The tactic worked as the Ethiopian came to an abrupt halt, later dropping out entirely. Makau sped away unopposed and finished the race with a world record, beating his rival's former mark by 21 seconds. Behind him, Stephen Kwelio Chemlany, who started as a pacemaker, continued to the finish to take second place with a time of 2:07.55 hours and Kimaiyo was third to cross the line in 2:09:50 hours, making it a Kenyan podium sweep.
The two headline athletes for the women's race were Germany's Irina Mikitenko, the 2008 champion, and world record holder Paula Radcliffe
Paula Radcliffe
Paula Jane Radcliffe, MBE is an English long-distance runner. She is the current women's world record holder in the marathon with her time of 2:15:25 hours...
of Great Britain. Radcliffe had not raced in a marathon for two years, due to injury and childbirth, and stated that her target was to gain the qualifying time for the 2012 London Olympics. A trio of Russians, Lidiya Grigoryeva, Tatyana Petrova
Tatyana Petrova
Tatyana Valeriyevna Petrova is a Russian runner, who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase as well as the marathon.As a junior, Petrova finished nineteenth at the 2001 European Cross Country Championships and reached the finals of both the 3000 metres and 5000 metres at the 2002 World Junior...
and Nailiya Yulamanova
Nailiya Yulamanova
Nailiya Yulamanova is a Russian long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon.She won the Saransk Marathon in 2006 and went on to finish twelfth at the 2006 European Championships and 32nd at the 2007 World Championships. She won the Prague International Marathon in 2007 and the Istanbul...
were considered the other main contenders for the elite women's race. However, it was Florence Kiplagat
Florence Kiplagat
Florence Jebet Kiplagat is a Kenyan long-distance runner. She is a two-time world champion having won at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and the 2010 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships....
(the 2009 World Cross Country Champion
2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
The 37th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Al Bisharat Golf Course at Amman, Jordan on 28 March 2009. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition...
) who assumed the lead at the start of the race and set a fast pace. Only Radcliffe followed, but she fell back after 12 km as she was unable to match the Kenyan's speed. Kiplagat was never overtaken and crossed the line in a time of 2:19:44 hours, becoming the ninth fastest woman of all-time and completing her first ever marathon (she had started the 2011 Boston Marathon
2011 Boston Marathon
The 2011 Boston Marathon took place on Monday, April 18, 2011. Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya won the men's race in a time of 2:03:02. In recognizing Mutai's mark as the "fastest Marathon ever run", the International Association of Athletics Federations noted that the performance was not eligible for...
but dropped out). Radcliffe was in second place for much of the race, but was overtaken after 33 km by Mikitenko, who ran a more steady-paced race. The German was the eventual runner-up in 2:22:18 hours, while Radcliffe took third with a time of 2:23:46 hours.
The wheelchair races saw Swiss athletes take the top two places: Marcel Hug
Marcel Hug
Marcel Hug is a Paralympian athlete from Switzerland competing mainly in category T54 wheelchair racing events.Marcel competed in the 2004 Summer Paralympics as part of the Swiss relay teams in the 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams as wellas the 400m and 5000m but it was in the 800m and 1500m where he...
narrowly defeated Heinz Frei
Heinz Frei
Heinz Frei is a Swiss wheelchair athlete. Frei has had a long career of racing, winning the London Marathon wheelchair race three times, and earning 5 medals at the 2003 European games at the age of 45...
in the men's race and there was just one second between the women's winner Edith Hunkeler
Edith Hunkeler
Edith Hunkeler is a Swiss wheelchair racer, who competes at the Olympic and Paralympic level.Hunkeler was in a car accident at age 22 which left her a paraplegic. She began wheelchair racing two years later....
and runner-up Sandra Graf
Sandra Graf
Sandra Graf is a Swiss wheelchair athlete. Graf competes in wheelchair races of a variety of distances. She has twice put her career on hold to have children. In 2003 a lung embolism set back her training and kept her from competing in the marathon and 5000 meter distances, although she still...
. Ewan Fernandez and Sabine Berg were the men's and women's winners in the in-line skating marathon.
Elite races
Elite Men| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patrick Makau Musyoki Patrick Makau Musyoki Patrick Makau Musyoki is a runner from Kenya. He holds the world record in the marathon with a time of 2:03:38, set at the 2011 Berlin Marathon. He is also notable for his half marathon performances, having won a number of prominent competitions in Europe... |
2:03.38 | |
| 2 | Stephen Kwelio Chemlany | 2:07.55 | |
| 3 | Edwin Kimaiyo | 2:09.50 | |
| 4 | Felix Limo Felix Limo Felix Limo is a Kenyan long-distance runner, who specializes in the marathon.Limo held the 15 Kilometres road running world record from November 2001 to November 2010, where he lost the record to Leonard Komon. Limo set his record of 41:29 minutes in Nijmegen, the Netherlands when winning the... |
2:10.38 | |
| 5 | Scott Overall | 2:10.55 | |
| 6 | Ricardo Serrano Ricardo Serrano (athlete) Ricardo Serrano is a Spanish long-distance runner who specializes in the 10,000 metres.He finished ninth at the 2006 European Championships... |
2:13.32 | |
| 7 | Pedro Nimo | 2:13.34 | |
| 8 | Simon Munyutu Simon Munyutu Simon Munyutu is a French athlete who specialises in the men's marathon. Munyutu competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics.... |
2:14.20 | |
| 9 | Driss El Himer Driss El Himer Driss El Himer is a French long-distance runner.He competed in the marathon at the 2004 Olympics, finishing 68th.... |
2:14.46 | |
| 10 | Hendrick Ramaala | 2:16.00 |
Elite women
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florence Kiplagat Florence Kiplagat Florence Jebet Kiplagat is a Kenyan long-distance runner. She is a two-time world champion having won at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and the 2010 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships.... |
2:19.44 | |
| 2 | Irina Mikitenko | 2:22.18 | |
| 3 | Paula Radcliffe Paula Radcliffe Paula Jane Radcliffe, MBE is an English long-distance runner. She is the current women's world record holder in the marathon with her time of 2:15:25 hours... |
2:23.46 | |
| 4 | Atsede Habtamu Atsede Habtamu Atsede Habtamu Besuye is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who specialises in road running and the marathon distance.She came to prominence at the IAAF World Road Running Championships in 2007 where, at the age of nineteen, she ran a time of 1:08:29 for the half marathon – a record for a teenage... |
2:24.25 | |
| 5 | Tatyana Petrova Tatyana Petrova Tatyana Valeriyevna Petrova is a Russian runner, who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase as well as the marathon.As a junior, Petrova finished nineteenth at the 2001 European Cross Country Championships and reached the finals of both the 3000 metres and 5000 metres at the 2002 World Junior... |
2:25.01 | |
| 6 | Anna Incerti Anna Incerti Anna Carmela Incerti is an Italian long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon. She has represented Italy in the marathon at European, World and Olympic-level... |
2:25.32 | |
| 7 | Rosaria Console Rosaria Console Rosaria Console is an Italian long-distance runner who specializes in the half marathon and marathon.She suffered a tibia problem in early 2011 but still managed to take fifth place at the Rome City Marathon in March.... |
2:26.10 | |
| 8 | Valeria Straneo | 2:26.33 | |
| 9 | Eri Okubo | 2:28.49 | |
| 10 | Miranda Boonstra | 2:29.23 |
Wheelchair
Men| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marcel Hug Marcel Hug Marcel Hug is a Paralympian athlete from Switzerland competing mainly in category T54 wheelchair racing events.Marcel competed in the 2004 Summer Paralympics as part of the Swiss relay teams in the 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams as wellas the 400m and 5000m but it was in the 800m and 1500m where he... |
1:29:31 | |
| 2 | Heinz Frei Heinz Frei Heinz Frei is a Swiss wheelchair athlete. Frei has had a long career of racing, winning the London Marathon wheelchair race three times, and earning 5 medals at the 2003 European games at the age of 45... |
1:29:32 | |
| 3 | Brett McArthur | 1:35:04 |
Women
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edith Hunkeler Edith Hunkeler Edith Hunkeler is a Swiss wheelchair racer, who competes at the Olympic and Paralympic level.Hunkeler was in a car accident at age 22 which left her a paraplegic. She began wheelchair racing two years later.... |
1:45:20 | |
| 2 | Sandra Graf Sandra Graf Sandra Graf is a Swiss wheelchair athlete. Graf competes in wheelchair races of a variety of distances. She has twice put her career on hold to have children. In 2003 a lung embolism set back her training and kept her from competing in the marathon and 5000 meter distances, although she still... |
1:45:21 | |
| 3 | Francesca Porcellato Francesca Porcellato Francesca Porcellato is an Italian wheelchair athlete. she fell when she was 2 years old and broke here back. she discoverd that she is paralyzed. In addition to participation in the Paralympics, Porcellato is the only woman to have won four London Marathon wheelchair races... |
1:46:47 |
In-line skating
Men| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ewan Fernandez | 1:01:26 | |
| 2 | Roger Schneider Roger Schneider Roger Schneider is a Swiss long track speed skater who participates in international competitions.-Personal records:-Career highlights:European Allround ChampionshipsNational Championships-External links:***... |
1:02:38 | |
| 3 | Julien Levrard | 1:02:43 |
Women
| Position | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sabine Berg | 1:14:56 | |
| 2 | Giovanna Turchirelli | 1:14:56 | |
| 3 | Tina Strüver | 1:14:56 |